This website uses cookies. Read more about our cookie/privacy policy.

Accept and Close

The Sheffield culture guide written by in-the-know locals

Lucy Vann

Lucy Vann grew up in Sheffield and studied at the RCA. From her studio she works with video, sculpture, performance and installation. Her practice concentrates on minute instances within the world of the everyday, dwelling on gestures and fragments of conversation and unpicking ideas surrounding rituals and wellbeing. Her Instagram account is a testament to her preoccupation with the surreally mundane – @lucyvann is a drily hilarious gallery of observed, small-scale weirdness.

What projects or organisations are you affiliated with in Sheffield?
I’ve been a studio holder at S1 Artspace for about four years, I moved back from London to concentrate on my art practice. Being in Sheffield and at S1 is very nurturing and has allowed much more time and space to think.

What's your workspace like?
I keep my studio fairly minimal – we've moved around a bit but I've always had a desk, books and a view out the window. Having a regular place to go and people to be with is very important. Making work isn’t confined to one space though, it’s an ongoing thought process and parts of that naturally happen elsewhere.

How do you choose the themes you work with?
It doesn't feel like there's much of a choice! I’ve always been drawn to qualities present within overlooked or seemingly uninteresting moments. It’s probably my upbringing.

What, who or where should be better known in Sheffield?
S20.

What would you change about the city?
Some of the things that frustrate me about Sheffield are also what I like about it.

Update: since publishing this interview, Lucy has now moved studios and is now based at Yorkshire Artspace.

You might also like...

Western Bank Library

A modernist beauty that makes us envy students for all the hours they get to spend here.

Subjects of State, Labours of Love

Fri. 14 February 2025 — Sun. 25 May 2025

Site Gallery

An immersive multi-channel film installation, presenting an intimate portrait of Caribbean associations in Wolverhampton from the 1980s to the present day, and Sheffield African and Caribbean Community Association (SADACCA).

No Bounds

Fri. 10 October 2025 — Sun. 12 October 2025

A weekend of bleeps, beats and sweaty grins – bringing together music, visual art and technology. Lineup for 2025 to be confirmed.

Kelham Makes: Jesmonite Jewellery

Sun. 23 February 2025

Kelham Island Museum

Create your own jesmonite jewellery including handmade beads, necklaces, earrings, brooches and more with artist and maker, Kim Searle, using a variety of geometric and recycled moulds.